Excalibur Food Dehydrator Review

I recently wrote an article comparing the best food dehydrators on the market, and it's gotten a pretty good response. I wanted to take it one step further and write an individual, detailed review for all of the dehydrators on that list to give you all some more insight into each one. Today I will be writing my Excalibur Food Dehydrator review. This is the brand I recommend most over all others, and the one I personally use myself. Alright, here we go. Features of the Excalibur Food Dehydrator Comes in your choice of several different models: 4 trays, 5&hellip;

Review Overview

Value for Money

Clean Up

Noise

How Well It Dehydrates

Warranty

90

Great!

Summary : Best dehydrator brand on the market. Dries everything evenly, comes with a great warranty, and is very simple to use and clean up.

I recently wrote an article comparing the best food dehydrators on the market, and it’s gotten a pretty good response. I wanted to take it one step further and write an individual, detailed review for all of the dehydrators on that list to give you all some more insight into each one.

Today I will be writing my Excalibur Food Dehydrator review. This is the brand I recommend most over all others, and the one I personally use myself.

Alright, here we go.

Features of the Excalibur Food Dehydrator

Comes in your choice of several different models: 4 trays, 5 trays, or 9 trays.

220, 440, or 600 watts of power in the motor depending on model.

Many color choices.

Adjustable thermostat ranging from 95-155 degrees fahrenheit. This means it’s low enough to preserve the enzymes in raw foods, but high enough to safely make jerky.

Heat is distributed evenly over all trays. This is due to the fan design and ensures even drying of all your ingredients.

Polyscreen inserts are BPA-free and simple to clean.

Trays are removable so you have room for bigger items if required.

Certain models come with a built-in timer to automatically shut off the dehydrator when the cycle is finished.

What All Comes in Your Excalibur Dehydrator Package?

The unit itself.

4, 5, or 9 trays depending on your model.

BPA-free mesh screens to put on the trays.

Free guide to dehydrating.

The non-stick paraflex sheets are sold separately. These are the sheets you will need to use when dehydrating more “liquidy” ingredients like batters.

Size

There are 3 different models you can choose from. You can go with 4 trays, 5 trays, or 9 trays. Each one being a different size of course. I will break down each one below:

4 Tray Model:

6.5″ tall

13″ wide

16-1/4″ in depth

8 pounds

Provides 4 square feet of drying space

5 Tray Model:

8.5″ tall

17″ wide

19″ in depth

16 pounds

8 square feet of drying space

9 Tray Model:

12.5″ tall

17″ wide

19″ in depth

22 pounds

15 square feet of drying space

Fan and Motor

The fan and motor on the Excalibur food dehydrators are designed in a way so that they will distribute heat evenly over all your food. The fan is in the back of the unit instead of the top or bottom like you will see with other dehydrators. This design is what ensures your food will not only dry quicker, but evenly as well, so you don’t have to worry about rotating trays ever.

The sizes and power are also going to vary depending on which model you get. Here are the specs for each:

4 Tray Model:

4 inch fan

220 watts of power

5 Tray Model:

5 inch fan

440 watts of power

9 Tray Model:

7 inch fan

600 watts of power

Noise Level

The Excalibur isn’t extremely loud, but it does give off a decent amount of noise while it’s running. I would compare the sound to about the same as the exhaust fan in your bathroom (maybe a little quieter). Now I use a 9 tray version, so since the 4 and 5 trays have smaller fans and less powerful motors, you can probably expect less noise out of those than the 9 tray.

Either way, it’s not something that’s so loud to where it’s distracting or will keep you up at night. If you’re in another room and the dehydrator is in your kitchen, you will barely hear it.

Color Options

The two main colors you will see the Excalibur available in are black and white. They do have some other options on their website, such as stainless steel, copper, camouflage, cherry, raspberry, and blueberry, but it looks like these specialty colors are going to cost you a bit more money. These other colors do look really cool though, so you have to determine if you want to spend the extra cash. Here’s a look at them below:

Warranty

The warranty you get with Excalibur dehydrators is really good I think. On the 4 tray, you get a 5 year warranty. On the 5 and 9 tray models, you get a 10-year warranty. The long warranty period shows that they stand behind their products.

How the Excalibur Works

This dehydrator is very simple to use. Once you have determined the recipe you want to make, just put your ingredients onto the trays, use the temperature knob to select the proper temperature, push the trays in, and close the front lid and you’re good to go. If you have a unit with a timer built into it, go ahead and set the timer for the required amount of time and the unit will automatically shut off once it’s done.

Even if you’re unsure of the proper temperature for a certain ingredient, there’s a handy guide on top of the dehydrator right next to the temperature controls that tells you what temp you need for each ingredient:

For some recipes that are more liquid like batters, you will need non-stick paraflexx sheets. These are sold separately and can be found on Amazon for pretty cheap.

Clean Up

Clean up is also simple with the Excalibur. Since the trays easily slide in and out, once you’re done, you can either hand-wash them or toss them in the dishwasher. Same with the paraflexx sheets if you have any. Due to their non-stick surface, the food comes off easily so you won’t have to worry about scrubbing it all off.

In a lot of scenarios, just giving the trays and sheets a quick rinse is all you need. Then after a few uses, you can toss them in the dishwasher for a thorough cleaning.

Pros and Cons

Everything has it’s pros and cons, so here is what I came up with for the Excalibur food dehydrators.

Pros

Dries everything evenly so you don’t have to rotate trays.

Long warranty period on all models.

Easy clean-up.

Lots of cool color options.

Very easy to use.

Good for a ton of different food recipes.

Most highly-recommended dehydrator on the market.

Cons

The 9 tray model is rather large, so you will need to clear some counter space for it when it’s being used, and a good place to store it when not in use.

It does create a decent amount of noise (about the same as a bathroom exhaust fan). While it’s not over-the-top loud, it’s something to keep in mind.

Best Place to Buy Your Excalibur?

The best place to purchase your Excalibur dehydrator is directly from their official website. By going through them and not a middle-man, you know you’re getting the best quality product, your full warranty, and the best price. Plus it gives you a chance to check out all their different models and extra accessories you can purchase with your dehydrator like paraflexx sheets and recipe books.

You can also check out Amazon.com as I have seen some good deals on there as well. And since Amazon is a trusted retailer for Excalibur, you will still be getting a quality product, the full warranty, free shipping, and a great price.

Wrapping Up My Excalibur Dehydrator Review

Out of all the dehydrators on the market, the Excalibur is not only my personal favorite, but the one almost everyone else recommends as well. If you’re looking for a great machine to make jerky, dehydrate fruits, vegetables, herbs, breads, crackers, and more, this is the one you want.

While it is going to cost you a little more than other dehydrators, the price is well worth it if you plan on making lots of food with it.

I would recommend the 9 tray model because even if you feel it’s too many trays at first, once you see everything you can make with this machine, you will quickly start filling up trays. Plus, it’s better to have too many than to buy a machine with not enough trays and then you find yourself buying a second unit, or spending twice as much time preparing recipes.

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